Microgaming to use IP blocking techonology to block US players

Online casino and poker provider Microgaming has recently decided that they will be blocking access to their websites and gaming clients to customers in thirteen US States. The list is as follows:

Illinois
Indiana
Kentucky
Louisiana
Michigan
Nevada
New Jersey
New York
Oregon
South Dakota
Washington
Wisconsin
Utah

While the recent change seems to be in the wake of a recent decision by a Kentucky judge to seize 141 gambling and poker related domain names, Microgaming says that the policy has always been in place, they will just be enforcing it now to protect their interests. Microgaming had the following to say:

“This is not a new rule, just sudden enforcement of an old one Players can still play in the Sportsbook. Players can still register from the banned states, but will not be able to play in the Poker client or in the Casino. The IP blocking service Microgaming is using also has a proxy detector, so players will no longer be able to use a proxy to hide their IPs.”

The recent Kentucky decision is most likely aimed at reducing competition on their state run lottery, horse racing and other sanctioned gambling. While the decision will definitely be disputed and appeals are already in motion, the decision by Judge Wingate was definitely a setback to those looking for a future where online gambling and online poker is legal and regulated. Microgaming’s decision as mentioned is nothing new, but will allow them better control over ensuring that they aren’t servicing customers where online gambling and poker is illegal. Microgaming currently runs a larger number of online poker rooms and casinos. 32Red Poker, Crazy Poker, Royal Vegas Poker, Unibet and Pokerwize are some of Microgaming’s better known properties.

Full Tilt Continues to Break High Stakes Records

Full Tilt Poker for some time now has been known for hosting some of the largest games on the internet and this weekend was no different with record breaking pots being scooped. Most of the action can be attributed to Full Tilt’s infamous “RailHeaven” table which brings together some of the biggest names in online poker to battle it out over $500/$1000 no limit Hold’em. Patrik Antonius, Phil Ivey and Tom Dwan are some of the well known players that regularly frequent the game.

This weekend, records were broke time and again as on four separate occasions new highs for pots were made. Tom Dwan made the first new record when he took down a cool $617,968 dollar pot in a heads up match with Lars Luzack. Dwan unfortunately wouldn’t hold onto that money. Soon after he gave up a whopping $678,000 pot to reigning WSOPE champion John Juanda. Juanda barely scathed by when he picked up a third king while holding KK against Dwan’s AA.

Phil Ivey in his normal form went on to break Juanda’s $678,000 pot when he pumped the pot pre flop and made a set of tens which gifted him with an impressive $690,000 pot. The fourth and final record again involved Tom Dwan who has become well known and liked for his massive swings! “Urindanger” took down a huge pot of almost three quarters of a million dollars when he was blessed with $723,938.

RailHaven is an aptly named table being that it regularly produces massive record breaking nights. The biggest names in poker gather on Full Tilt to play in some of the most action oriented games on the internet. Imagine that in just a few minutes, internet poker superstars are winning and losing more money in one hand than some will ever earn in a lifetime!

Neteller releases two new cards

It’s been a wild year of re-structuring for the online payment processor Neteller. Today, the company has just released information for their new Mastercard branded prepaid and online use cards. The company will make two different kinds of cards available to their customers. One is a virtual online card that will be used mainly for online purchases and the other is a Mastercard branded ATM/debit card similar to the one Neteller offered a few years ago that gave customers ATM access to their Neteller accounts. These products are much stronger offering the backup and protection of the Mastercard Brand. Here is the information on each of the cards:

Virtual Prepaid Card by MasterCard is designed primarily for use online. The virtual card application generates a single-use, unique 16-digit card number and populates the checkout page with full payment details for the user. The Net+ Virtual card offers the convenience of paying online (everywhere MasterCard is accepted) from a player’s computer combined with high level of security and privacy, and will be part of the Neteller Desktop.

Prepaid Card by MasterCard is an ATM-compatible chip and pin plastic card which allows consumers to access funds within their e-wallet at points-of-sale or by withdrawing cash at ATMs. The card will be usable at 27.3 million acceptance locations, including 1.9 million ATMs and other locations where cash may be obtained.

David Gagie, president of Neteller’s member’s services division had the following to say about the release:

“The launch of the Net+ prepaid cards will provide our consumers with a more convenient and cost-effective way to withdraw cash and make purchases using the funds in their e-wallets. This launch is a key part of the Group’s strategy to bring new customers to the Neteller e-wallet and to extend the lifetime value of existing customers.”

Tracking your Sit n Go win rate

If you’re not currently tracking your win rate in tournament Sit and Go events, you should start. Today. Seriously, if you’re here reading our Sit n Go strategy articles and you’re looking to earn a decent long-term profit you have to track your win/loss rate somehow. Whether it’s a cool looking chart, a program such as Poker Office, or just a simple spreadsheet, you must track this important metric. The benefit to knowing “where you are” in terms of total winnings and cash out percentages will become a major part of your overall strategy. Even if you’re a casual player there are advantages to keeping track of this if you play more than a few SNG’s a week.

The benefits of using automated software such as Sit N Go Shark are numerous and run far beyond just tracking Sit n Go play. Both of these applications are capable of importing your complete hand histories from multiple sites and much more. From how well you play in middle position when holding pocket Jacks to how effective your steal attempts from the button are all tracked seamlessly. Both packages have their merits so if you’re interested, please visit their respective site and let us know what you think.

Back to tracking your win/loss rate - This is a no brainer once you start playing seriously. If you don’t have a good grasp on where you are at each buy-in level, type of game, and number of seats, then you’re going to have a hard time being successful. Take the time to review your play and analyze each win and each loss (perhaps more important than the wins). This information will help you choose the best game to play, whether 6 or 10 man events are your strong area, and what buy-in is appropriate for  your current level of play.

Most importantly, this will help you develop a habit of reviewing your play and making the small adjustments that are important as you mature as a player. Having this information on demand and up to date will become a vital part of your overall Sit and Go strategy. So take this information and soak it all up, take it in bits and pieces as it’s a lot to absorb at one time. As time passes, you may well see your win rate improve drastically. After all, you ARE tracking those win/loss rates by now, right?

Best poker site to play sit n go tournaments

A question that’s often asked is, “where is the best place to play sit n go tournaments online?” I’ve played at every top online poker site over the last 7 years and have logged literally thousands of SNG’s at those sites. Of course, there’s a range of criteria that’s involved when ranking poker sites but since we’re focusing on Sit n Go tables, let’s take a look at the top three sites for SNG Poker and go from there:

Number one: Full Tilt Poker has to top the list for Sit and Go action. Touting a large number of players, you don’t have to look far to find a low to middle limit sit and go table that will fill up within a few minutes. The table layout at Full Tilt is very clear and logical. You have control over how your table appears, you can resize the window size, and stats are just a click away. They have one of the best Turbo Sit n Go format as well with blinds that go up every three minutes.

Number two: Cake Poker also offers a large and rapidly growing player base. What does this mean to the average Sit and Go player? Table selection and plenty of WEAK players, that’s what. The Cake Poker network brings many players from their casino partners to the poker tables and since they don’t want to lose their money in cash games, many of them head to the Sit and Go tournaments. If you’re from the US this is a great choice because they will still process poker deposits on US credit cards so it’s easy to get money onto the site.

Number three: Poker Stars is actually the largest poker site out there. The reason I’m ranking it third is because they have a large number of professional SNG players that focus on the middle limit games and multi-table the lower limit sit and go’s. Table selection is good but beware of sitting down with a shark that’s going to bust you before you know what hit you.

At the end of the day, the best site to play sit n go tournaments is the site you feel most comfortable playing. These three sites are only suggestions and it’s probably best that you try all three before settling on a favorite. Other notables that didn’t make the top three list include Card Spike Poker and Carbon Poker. Card Spike is actually on the Cake Poker Network but they often offer better bonuses for new players.

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